Thread: Why does razor pulls and scratches my face despite HHT passed ?

Kekon,
dzień dobry! There are two things here that seem to point out your issue. Kees talked about the various test we perform to move on to the next stage of honing. Those include the TNT, TPT and HHT. He is absolutly correct in saying these are only tests. In fact I really think that two of them, the TNT and the TPT, are only a tactile way of us being able to move on to the next stage. The HHT is, of course, a visual method. These "tests", I believe as Kees does, that these should actually be called "indicators".

If you stop and think about it the TNT and the TPT are the only two of the three that you actually come in full contact with the blade testing it completely from one end to the other. The HHT is a random indicator of different points along the blade. When I use the HHT I only check 4 to 5 points along the blade, and this is less than 1% of the total blade. It use to trick me all the time. I still do the HHT to make sure I haven't screwed the edge up after stropping, but a long time ago I changed to checking the edge with my little Microscope before moving to the pasts and strop. The final test, the shaving test, IS the only test that really tells the story.

This is where nun2sharp points out that microchipping might be the culpret. I Also agree with him on this point. Because of the HHT not really being to usefull, other than making you smile because you know that those small points are sharp, I have resorted to checking the blade with my little 60x microscope prior to going to the pasts and strop. After the strop I do both the microscope and then the HHT. Because I changed to this method long ago, I invariably find a microchip somewhere along the length of the blade at the end of my 16k stone. Interestingly enough these are almost always either around 1/4" in from the toe or 1/8" in from the heal. Don't know why, just is.
Find some way to look at that edge and let us know it you do have microchipping.

Just my .02


Ray